Leucanthemum plant named ‘Banana Cream II’

ABSTRACT

The new Shasta daisy plant,  Leucanthemum  ‘Banana Cream II’, is a sturdy plant with dark-green serrated foliage and stiff stems. The numerous freely-flowering inflorescences producing two to three rows of ray florets starting light yellow and developing to creamy-colored. The center disk florets are golden yellow. Flowering repeats into fall if deadheaded. The new plant is useful in the landscape as a long-flowering border, in mass, as accent plants and containerized for patio or indoor use, or as a cut flower.

Botanical classification: Leucanthemum x superbum (Bergmans exJ.W.Ingram) D.H.Kent.

Variety denomination: ‘Banana Cream II’.

STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES UNDER 37 CFR 1.77(B)(6)

The first non-enabling disclosure of the claimed plant was made byWalters Gardens, Inc. on Dec. 1, 2020 in the form of a website briefdescription and photograph followed by a short description andphotograph in the “Walters Gardens 2021-2022 Catalog” by WaltersGardens, Inc first distributed on May 21, 2021. The first enablingdisclosure of a sales of the claimed plant was on Aug. 3, 2020 byWalters Gardens, Inc. Walters Gardens, Inc. obtained the new plant andinformation about the new plant directly from the inventor. No plants ofLeucanthemum ‘Banana Cream II’ have been sold, in this country oranywhere in the world, nor has any disclosure of the new plant beenmade, more than one year prior to the filing date of this application,and such sale or disclosure within one year was either derived directlyor indirectly from the inventor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The original Leucanthemum x superbum, or Shasta daisies, were bred byLuther Burbank in the late 1800's as a cross between Leucanthemummaximum (Ramond) DC. and Leucanthemum vulgare with Leucanthemum lacustre(Broth.) Samp. and Nipponanthemum nipponicum. The new plant,Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream II’ originated from a planned breedingprogram of the inventor at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland,Mich., USA. The new Leucanthemum was a single plant selected from agroup of seedlings from a cross on Jul. 15, 2015 between ‘Sante’ U.S.Plant Pat. No. 19,829 and ‘Banana Cream’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 23,181. Theindividual plant that eventually became ‘Banana Cream II’ was firstevaluated in the summer of 2016 and originally given the breeder number15-1-6 through the subsequent evaluations.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Shastadaisy botanically known as Leucanthemum x superbum and hereinafterreferred to by the cultivar name ‘Banana Cream II’ or the new plant.

Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by division at the same nurseryin Zeeland, Mich. as the fall of 2017 has demonstrated that the newcultivar reproduces true to type with all of the characteristics of theoriginal plant retained through successive generations of asexualpropagation. The new plant has since been asexually propagated by basalshoot tip cuttings and sterile shoot tip tissue culture.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The new plant, Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream II’, is most closely comparedto Leucanthemum ‘Leumayel’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 19,242 and ‘BananaCream’, ‘Cream Puff’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 30,074, ‘Snowcap’ (notpatented), ‘Marshmallow’ copending U.S. Plant Patent Application,‘Goldfinch’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 24,499 and ‘Real Goldcup’ U.S. Plantpatent application Ser. No. 17/377,371.

‘Leumayel’ is slightly shorter in habit with less branching. In testtrials in Zeeland, Mich., ‘Cream Puff’ has a shorter habit and hasflowers that are less yellow. ‘Snowcap’ has smaller singleinflorescences and shorter habit. ‘Marshmallow’ is shorter in habit andthe inflorescences are double with more laciniate and less yellow rayfloret ligules. ‘Goldfinch’ has shorter ray florets that are initiallybright lemon yellow and lighten to ivory white. ‘Real Goldcup’ hasshorter ray florets that are slightly more deeply emarginate.

‘Sante’ has smaller, flatter and less dome-shaped inflorescences withless yellow ray florets. ‘Banana Cream’ is later flowering, requireslonger vernalization and has a more single inflorescence with rayflorets that are less yellow and slightly shorter habit.

Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream II’ differs from all cultivars known to theinventor in the following combined traits:

-   -   1. Sturdy, dense, mounded plants with green serrated foliage and        stiff stems;    -   2. Inflorescence with two to three rows of ray florets.    -   3. Ray florets with ligules starting light yellow and remaining        into maturity while initially flattened;    -   4. Center disk florets of golden yellow;    -   5. Ray floret ligules mature to creamy-colored;    -   6. Freely flowering habit and repeating if deadheaded;    -   7. Foliage is dark green.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS

The photographs of ‘Banana Cream II’ demonstrate the overall appearanceand landscape qualities of the new plant, including the unique traitsplanted in a full-sun trial garden in Zeeland, Mich. The colors are asaccurate as reasonably possible with color reproductions. Ambient lightspectrum, source, direction and temperature may cause the appearance ofminor variation in color.

FIG. 1 shows a two-year-old new plant at peak flowering withinflorescences covering the plant from nearly top to ground.

FIG. 2 shows a close-up of some the inflorescence and the buds atvarious stages.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following descriptions and color references are based on the 2015edition of The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart except wherecommon dictionary terms are used. The new plant has not been observed inall possible environments and conditions. The phenotype of Leucanthemum‘Banana Cream II’ may vary with different growing conditions such aschanges in temperature, light intensity, water availability, fertility,but without change in the genotype.

The plants used for description purposes were two-year-old and weregrown in Zeeland, Mich. in a full-sun, loamy-sand trial plot environmentwith supplemental water and limited fertilizer as needed and also apartially-shaded greenhouse. Summer temperatures range from night lowsof about 10° C. to daytime highs of about 34° C. Measurements andnumerical values represent averages or ranges of trial plants.

-   Botanical classification: Leucanthemum x superbum;-   Parentage: Female is ‘Sante’, male parent is ‘Banana Cream’;-   Habit: Herbaceous perennial with about 28 to 36 branched stems    arising from rhizome base; each stem having four to eight    inflorescences each; about 56 cm tall and 44 cm across with rounded    top and sides;-   Roots: Fibrous, thin, heavily branched; root color nearest RHS 155D    depending on soil type;-   Propagation: Tip cuttings or tissue culture; about two weeks to    produce roots from cutting; about 33 weeks to finish to flower in    3.8 liter pot depending on season;-   Stems: About 28 to 36 main stems per plant; strong; mostly upright;    canaliculated; hispidulous; terete, hollow in distal portion; 9.0 mm    diameter at base; to 52 cm tall; about 13 nodes before flowers;    average internode length about 3.0 cm;-   Stem color: Nearest RHS 146B with channels nearest RHS 137B;-   Axillary branches: Four to eight; between 6.0 to 12.0 cm long and    4.0 to 6.0 mm diameter; upright to angles of about 30° or less from    main stem; side flowers rising above initial flower;-   Axillary branch color: Nearest RHS 146B with channels nearest RHS    137B;-   Leaves: Lanceolate to linear; apex acute; base attenuate; alternate;    sparsely puberulent adaxial and abaxial; margin serrate and    ciliolate with seven to nine teeth per side, and size average about    3.0 mm long and 3.0 mm wide; nearly microscopically micro-ciliolate;    lowest leaves to about 12.5 cm long and 3.8 cm wide, average about    8.2 cm long and 3.2 cm wide; no fragrance detected;-   Leaf color: Young adaxial between RHS 137A and RHS 137B distally and    nearest RHS 144A proximally, abaxial nearest RHS 137B distally and    RHS 144A proximally; mature adaxial nearest RHS NN137A, abaxial    nearest RHS 144A;-   Veins: Anastomosing; glabrescent adaxial and puberulent to pubescent    abaxial; adaxial slightly raised, abaxial midrib costate and    secondary veins smooth;-   Vein color: Adaxial midrib nearest RHS 145D proximally and distally    midrib and secondary veins nearest RHS 137B; abaxial midrib nearest    RHS 145D and secondary veins nearest RHS 137B;-   Inflorescence: Capitate; about 80 per plant at one time; primary    inflorescence 11.0 cm across and 4.5 cm tall; comprising two or    three outer rows of large ray florets and about 450 to 550 central    disk florets; individual inflorescence lasting about three weeks on    or cut from plant; upright;-   Fragrance: Faint dirty fragrance detected;-   Flowering period: Early summer (late June) to early autumn in    Michigan if deadheaded;-   Peduncle: Strong, stiff; hispidulous to puberulent; cylindrical;    longitudinally fluted; 6.0 to 50.0 cm long and about 9.0 mm diameter    at base; upwardly;-   Peduncle color: Nearest RHS 146B with channels nearest RHS 137B;-   Bud: With ray florets still vertical — oblong globose, 3.5 cm across    ray florets and 2.2 cm from base of phyllaries to apex of capitulum;-   Bud color of greenhouse grown plant: Adaxial and abaxial ray floret    ligule nearest RHS 1D distally, central portion nearest RHS 1A    adaxial and RHS 2B abaxial, base nearest RHS 146C; phyllaries    nearest RHS 138A in center and margin nearest RHS 196D;-   Bud color of full sun grown plant: Adaxial and abaxial ray floret    ligule nearest RHS 3A distally, central portion nearest RHS 1D    adaxial and RHS 3D abaxial, base nearest RHS 146D; phyllaries    nearest RHS 138A in center and margin nearest RHS 196D;-   Floret type: Ray florets on the exterior two to three rows, disk    florets in inflorescence center;-   Ray florets: To about 64 per inflorescence; arranged around outer    perimeter of capitulum in two to three rows; ligules glabrous    adaxial and abaxial, base attenuate rolled into tube, apex    emarginate with typically two notches indented to about 0.5 mm,    margin entire; to about 46.0 mm long and 11.0 mm wide; typically    flat, but occasionally reflex in distal 5 mm;-   Disk florets: Tubular; to about 450 to 550 per inflorescence, at    center of capitulum; combined inflorescences disk to about 32.0 mm    across and about 12.0 mm tall; individual floret about 10.5 mm tall    and 2.5 mm wide, five tepals, about 8.5 mm long; with acute apex,    fused in basal 6.5 mm;-   Ray floret color greenhouse grown: When ray floret ligules first    horizontal adaxial between RHS 2D and RHS 4D in middle portion, apex    between RHS 2A and RHS 2B, base between RHS 146D and RHS 144A,    abaxial middle portion nearest RHS 4D, apex nearest RHS 3B and base    nearest RHS 146C; mature adaxial and abaxial ligules nearest RHS    NN155A in middle portion, adaxial apex nearest RHS 4C and abaxial    apex nearest RHS 4A, base between RHS 146D and RHS 144A;-   Ray floret color full sun grown: When ray floret tepals first    horizontal adaxial ligules middle portion nearest RHS 2D, abaxial    middle portion nearest RHS 4D, adaxial apex nearest 4B and abaxial    apex nearest RHS 4A, basal 5 mm nearest RHS 144A; mature adaxial    ligules between RHS 155D and RHS 8D and abaxial nearest RHS NN155B    in the middle portions, 1.0 mm apices adaxial and abaxial nearest    RHS 5D and basal 5.0 mm nearest RHS 146D;-   Disk floret color: Young adaxial and abaxial corolla tube nearest    RHS 14B in distal 1 mm, next distal 2 mm transparent, corolla tube    base between RHS 146D and RHS 145A; mature adaxial and abaxial    corolla tube nearest RHS 14B distally, center transparent and base    RHS 146D and RHS 145A;-   Androecium: Five stamens connate around style;    -   -   Anther.—Five; connate into tube; about 3.0 mm long and less            than one mm wide, not present in ray florets, functional in            disk florets; coloration nearest RHS 17B.        -   Filaments.—Fused together at apex, 3.0 mm to 4.0 mm long and            less than 0.1 mm diameter, filament coloration translucent            to nearest RHS 145D.        -   Pollen.—Only found in disk florets; color nearest RHS 21A.-   Gynoecium: In ray florets and disk florets; to about 10.0 mm long;    exserted;    -   -   Style.—About 6.0 mm long and less than 0.3 mm diameter,            split and curved at apical 1.0 mm; color nearest RHS 145D.        -   Stigma.—Bifid; to about 1.5 mm long and less than 0.5 mm            diameter; color nearest RHS 9C.-   Involucre: Made of about three layers of phyllaries; to 4.0 cm    across and 1.0 cm tall;-   Phyllaries: Lanceolate; adaxial and abaxial glabrous, matte; margin    micro-erose and transparent; apex acute; base truncate; to about 44    per head arranged in about three imbricate rows; 11.0 mm long and    4.0 mm wide;-   Phyllaries color: Adaxial and abaxial identical, outer 1.0 mm of    margin transparent, next inner 0.5 mm with veins into transparent    margin nearest RHS N199B, next 1.0 mm between RHS 145A and RHS N144A    with center nearest RHS 137B;-   Fruit: Achene, pointed at base and rounded at distal end with    longitudinal color striations nearest RHS N200A and lighter than RHS    155D; about 3 to 4 mm long and 1.5 mm across;

Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream II’ grows best with adequate moisture but cantolerate some dryness once established. Vernalization is not requiredfor flowering but is beneficial. The new plant is tolerant of hightemperatures of at least 36° C. and cold hardy to at least USDA zone 5as well as strong wind and rain. Other disease or pest resistance beyondthat common to Shasta daisy has not been observed.

I claim:
 1. The new and distinct Shasta daisy plant Leucanthemum ‘BananaCream II’ as herein shown and described.